Texas Lottery's future in doubt despite House OK

AUSTIN — As expected, the Texas House of Representatives on Wednesday gave final approval to a bill that would reauthorize the existence of the Texas Lottery for another 12 years. However, a two-hour floor debate and 10 amendments filed — highly unusual in the final vote of bill — plus what happened the day before suggest the long-range future of the 20-year-old institution is uncertain.

This became evident after Rep. John Smithee, R-Amarillo, offered an amendment that would abolish the Texas Lottery Commission by 2017. Although the amendment did not pass because it fell short of a two-thirds vote in the 150-member chamber, the 95 “ayes” it received gave gambling opponents hope the state lottery could be dismantled in the foreseeable future.

“What is happening today and what happened yesterday does suggest that the fate of the Texas Lottery is uncertain,” Rep. Four Price said. “There was a tremendous amount of expressed criticism and disappointment with the revenue generation and the effects that the lottery has produced.”

Moreover, there also was criticism of the way the Lottery Commission operates, said Price, R-Amarillo.

“Because of the number of votes essential to abolish it, I would not be surprised that (in future sessions) members file bills to put that question back to the voters or possibly abolish the commission or take some measures that change the way we operate the lottery,” Price said.

Texas voters approved the Texas Lottery two decades ago.

Price said though he is against gambling he voted in favor of the bill Rep. Rafael Anchia, D-Dallas, authored because there was no proposal to replace the $1.2 billion a year the lottery generates for the state.

On Tuesday afternoon, the House was expected to pass HB 2197, the measure needed to authorize the existence of the Lottery Commission for another 12 years.

What no one saw coming is that though some members just wanted to cast a “protest vote,” a majority ended up voting against the reauthorization of the Lottery Commission, which in essence meant abolishing the lottery, said Rep. Lyle Larson, R-San Antonio.

“I think all of us were stunned there was a majority who wanted to abolish the lottery,” said Larson, who subsequently filed a motion to reverse the vote and then voted in favor of the bill. In all, 25 Republicans — including Larson and Rep. Tom Craddick, Midland — and four Democrats who initially voted against the measure reversed their votes.

Smithee, as well as fellow Republicans John Frullo and Charles Perry of Lubbock, Ken King of Canadian and Drew Springer of Muenster, voted against the measure on the initial vote Tuesday, when the bill was brought for reconsideration two hours later, and when it came up for final passage on Wednesday.

Smithee said he offered his amendment as a compromise because it became evident there is a strong opposition to the lottery in the Republican-dominated House.

“There is clearly legislative concern and discontent,” Smithee said after HB 2197 finally passed. “It is clear that the House of Representatives is not particularly fond of gambling as revenue-producing.

“The second thing,” Smithee added, “is that there some discontent on how the lottery has operated, that there are too many persons that have profited from the lottery and not the children of Texas … only about 25 cents of each dollar go to the school children.”

The chamber ended approving a proposal by Rep. Mike Villarreal, D-San Antonio, calling for a 10-member joint legislative panel that will look into ways of winding down the lottery.

Rob Kohler, a consultant with the Christian Life Commission, a leading gambling opponent at the Texas State Capitol, said what he saw is a growing opposition not just to the lottery but to pro-gambling bills in general.

Sen. John Carona, R-Dallas, authored a bill that would ask Texas voters to decide whether they want a limited number of Las Vegas-type of casinos in the state, as well as other limited gambling.

“What we saw on the (House) floor was members standing up,” said Kohler, whose organization is affiliated with Texas Baptists. “And you know what? We also get bombarded with these questions all the time. What happened to dollars going to education?”

In addition, Kohler stressed, “To get $2 billion (in revenue), which is what the Texas Lottery brings in, Texans have to wager $8 billion. Just think what that would do the local economies.”

Smithee — who along with Craddick served in the Legislature two decades ago when the lawmakers asked state voters to approve the state lottery — said this is precisely why he voted against the bill in the early 1990s and again this week.

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